Putting rapists behind bars isn’t enough, castrate them!

There’s a very powerful, but controversial video about rape, doing the rounds on social media. This video accurately portrays a rapist’s mind-set and highlights the sense of entitlement and legitimacy with which many perpetrators view and justify their heinous actions.

Rape is a horrific crime, not just against the victim, but also against all of humanity. A man uses his physical power to subjugate a woman and use her to fulfil his sexual desires. Many experts argue that rape is not about sex, instead, it is about exerting power and domination. However, it is undeniable that unbridled sexual desire also plays a major role in many rapes.

The first deterrent then is cultural conditioning. If a man believes that forcing himself on a woman is an abhorrent act, he will be more likely to desist from allowing his desire to get the better of him.

In many cultures, men are conditioned to believe that women are inferior creatures and need to be punished if they cross certain boundaries. Women aren’t seen as having any autonomy over their own lives. Men make decisions for them and virtually ‘own’ every aspect of their being.

Women are there to be ‘used’ and rape becomes a weapon to exert control over women. A man with this mind-set will not think he’s doing anything wrong when he rapes a woman. It is as natural as seeing a fruit on a tree and plucking it to satisfy the desire. He sees his penis as being a divine endowment and a symbol of his superiority and entitlement over any woman’s body.

The fear of stringent punishment can douse the fire of many men with out of control libidos and also act as a counterweight to any cultural conditioning.

That’s where the radical punishment, castration of rapists, proposed by this video deserves attention and deeper consideration.

Rape is unlike any other crime and in our failure to combat it effectively, we as a society have thoroughly let down our women. In no other crime is the perpetrator allowed to retain the weapon of the crime, then why is a rapist allowed to retain his penis when he has used it as a weapon in a crime? A man who has raped once is likely to do it again if given the chance because he has no moral or emotional barriers that stop him.

The only true deterrent to rape is to take away that sense of entitlement and power that drives the rapist. Cruel and barbaric as it sounds, a truly safe environment for women can only be created when no man would dare to violate her. No doubt re-education and sensitivity are vital in this regard, but they will take a long time to take root. Punishment like castration will go a long way in de-incentivising and deterring rape. Desperate times call for desperate measures, and maybe it is time for this radical solution to be tried out to correct the physical imbalance and wipe out the tears, fears, and exploitation of the fairer sex.

The author is a learning and development professional with a background in finance and human resources that informs his commentaries on geopolitical and socioeconomic trends. He tweets as @amitnangia06 (twitter.com/amitnangia06)